The Bengals overcome the Ravens and progress to the AFC Divisional Round to meet the Bills.
1.Bengals clear Ravens, keep conference title defense alive.
Cincinnati began Super Wild Card Weekend in the difficult situation of having to play a division foe for the second week in a row. The Bengals faced a difficult-to-solve defense, similar to the second half of their Week 18 matchup. After gaining only 90 yards in the second half of their regular-season finale against the Ravens.
The Bengals concluded the game with only 234 yards of offense. Cincinnati averaged just 4.3 yards per play on Sunday, keeping the game alive by converting 7 of 13 third downs but failing to build an offensive advantage against a Ravens squad that should be beatable on paper.
As writer Gregg Rosenthal noted on Twitter, Baltimore has transformed the normally dynamic Bengals offense into the Baker Mayfield-led Panthers in their last two games. The Bengals are progressing thanks to some timely and opportunistic defense. They’ll hope to have learned enough to avoid another performance like this one the following Saturday.
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2. It’s still a game of inches.
Baltimore was a yard away from grabbing the lead in a game that most predicted the Ravens would lose. Tyler Huntley’s sneak-and-reach attempt failed catastrophically thanks to Logan Wilson’s brilliant attempt to knock the ball out of his hands, landing in the arms of defensive end Sam Hubbard, who rumbled 98 yards in the opposite way for a deciding touchdown.
Instead of trailing 24-17 in a game devoid of offensive firepower, the Bengals took the lead and a significant momentum swing in a single play. The defense then rose to the occasion, keeping Huntley and company from reaching the end zone. Huntley’s fumble ruined an otherwise terrific drive in which Baltimore traveled 80 yards in nine plays and appeared to be on its way to scoring, but it wasn’t the end of the game.
The Ravens still had whole of the fourth quarter to reply, but they didn’t. That fumble will stick in Ravens supporters’ thoughts for the next seven months, serving as evidence of how narrow the difference between triumph and defeat can be in this sport.
3. Tyler Huntley’s valiant effort falls short.
Lamar Jackson, who was still nursing a sprained knee, sat home for this one, leaving Huntley to try to propel the Ravens into the Divisional Round. Huntley settled in after an interception on the first drive, guiding touchdown drives of nine and 17 plays to send the Ravens into the half with a 10-9 lead.
He did enough to give Baltimore a fighting chance, particularly after connecting with Demarcus Robinson for a 41-yard score. But, in the end, Jackson’s absence was palpable, none more so than when Baltimore planned a designed run for Huntley, who had two blockers out in front but was tripped up from behind.
Baltimore didn’t have Jackson’s uncommon game-breaking skill, and Huntley just wasn’t good enough to pull the Ravens over the hump. In Baltimore, the next few months will be interesting in terms of the club’s future at quarterback.
4. Bengals suffer another injury up front.
Due to injury, Cincinnati began Super Wild Card Weekend without two of its five starting linemen. Bengals supporters may be locked in a time loop after seeing left tackle Jonah Williams leave the game with an injury of his own. The outcomes were immediate: Nine Ravens defenders had one or more QB pressures on Sunday night, hurting a Bengals offense that struggled.
We don’t know the extent of Williams’ injuries, but it didn’t look good. If the Bengals don’t get good news this week, they’ll have to prepare for another trip to the Divisional Round without at least two, if not three, of their starting lineman. Buffalo, which has a defense that had eight players record two-plus pressures against Miami on Sunday, must be salivating at the prospect of rushing Burrow with a very banged-up offensive line.
Before traveling to Orchard Park, Cincinnati will once again be required to piece together its blocking unit. The good news is that they have been here before.
5. John Harbaugh’s clock management backfires.
In the waning minutes of the game, Baltimore had a chance to send the game to OT or perhaps win it (with a two-point conversion), and Harbaugh had two of his three timeouts left in his pocket for the last drive. J.K. Dobbins gained 11 yards on a short pass with 1:17 remaining in the game, reaching the Bengals’ 17-yard line.
After a holding call on Kevin Zeitler moved them out of the red zone (on a running play, no less), the Ravens were forced to rely completely on the pass. With yards-to-go and time remaining on his side, Huntley forced two passes in the direction of Mark Andrews, both of which fell incomplete. A last-ditch heave to the end zone nearly resulted in a touchdown, but the ball slipped through the hands of James Proche.
The Ravens appeared to be in a better position in the final seconds, and Harbaugh later explained that he was reserving his timeouts for red-zone plays in order to score with as little remaining time as possible. Instead, all they could do was pray and hope for the best.
Next Gen stat of the game: On Sam Hubbard’s fumble-return score, Cincinnati earned 41.8 percentage points in win probability, increasing its chances of victory from 45.8% to 87.6%.
NFL Reesarch: Sam Hubbard’s 98-yard fumble return was the longest fourth-quarter go-ahead touchdown in NFL postseason history. It’s also the NFL postseason’s longest fumble return for a touchdown.
